A Time of Comfort & Purpose

    Purpose is what we all long. Whether we are trying to find purpose through our career, the places we seek, or family connections, we always can rely on the holiday season to centralize ourselves. This holiday season I find that my purpose is to seek out different experiences and traditions while remaining loyal to the traditions I keep near. These new traditions and experiences I speak of have a lot to do with my most valued possession: my home. Home is where we all find comfort during the holidays. I know that I have purpose towards helping others accomplish finding their place of comfort and helping to show others how to make their house a home that they can express themselves fully. Ideas and thoughts come easy to me and I hope someday to put this purpose of mine to good use. With that being said, I would like to share my place of comfort during the most wonderful time of the year.

   Let the greens take over your outdoor space. There's nothing more inviting during the holidays than the look of fresh greens outside a home. In Wisconsin, we especially need to bring some life to our outside, because of the snow making all color disappear. Make your outside inviting for your family to come home to every day. It is worth the effort to create the feeling of comfort and ownership.

   The Christmas tree is the best part of decorating. My theme this year is woodsy with a touch of class. I kept it super simple and chose a lot of grey tones to combine together. Don't be afraid to be bold and add large pieces to your tree instead of using multiple small pieces. I used my galvanized tree collar last year which goes well with the grey tones, but I felt I needed something richer.

   For my finale I wanted to share my new find that I came across at our local second hand store. I plan to have this buffet for years to come, because of how much functionality and organization it brings to my dining room. My dining room is the place where I find the most comfort in my home. I find that comfort through my decoration and pieces that I have accumulated over time just like this buffet. I always look forward to coming home and spending time at the dinner table.

   During this holiday season I hope you all find your comfort at home and feel purpose towards your experiences and traditions with friends and family. When talking with a friend, we determined that our time is what is valued during this time of year. This Christmas try spending time with close friends and relatives out of the times you traditionally get together. Think of experiences that you can do together to make your memories more savored during this fun season and be present with the people that gather.

Thank you for your support and have a joyful holiday season everyone.

Shades On & Work Gloves Off

In honor of our house warming today, we are pulling off the work gloves (so we say), and unveiling the place we call home to all you lucky and curious people. This past week Nate turned to me and said, "As much as I give you a hard time about starting projects, I do like your style and how everything is turning out." This entire experience of purchasing our first home gives me a large amount of hope for bigger and better things as we age. Life can get extremely busy at times, and it's nice to be reminded of what you want out of it.

We finally have curb appeal! We revamped the face of our home with some fun textured grey steppers running to the front door, sharp looking sconces that gives off a contemporary feel, perfectly placed boulders and an array of plants to bring life to the front.

Look out, our back is about as cute as our front! We came across an old electrical spool that I love having to set food and beverages out on or even as a high top to eat on. I have loved having guests over out on the patio, because it is the perfect place to entertain.

Our living room is so cozy and has that homey vibe; I'm always put in a good mood when enjoying this room. The black clock is my statement piece and is complemented with re-purposed patterned panels on the opposite side of the room. My farmhouse style buffet is my favorite focal point in our home. Simplicity with accumulated antiques and picture frames makes for a great space fill on the shelves!

The next statement piece is going to be behind our dining table. I want to fill the large white frame with rows of ship lap to create a 3 dimensional background. This is the next project I am going to throw at Nate...

I found this small table and metal bins at a flea market this summer. They are the perfect addition to our bathrooms and shapes both rooms to remove the bareness.

Everything is coming together better than I expected and there is much more to come. I like to keep it simple and not over complicate each individual room in our home. Your decoration, furniture, and trinkets should be spread out in the space you have to make the rooms feel inviting. Clutter is a focal point, so keep your items organized and purposely placed to show visitors an attractive setting.

The black and white color combo has really inspired me since we moved into our white sided and black trimmed home. It's easy for me to always come back to the color combo when designing, because it's already the exterior look. I encourage you to do the same! Choose a color pallet of 3 colors at the most and run with it. It's makes it easy to add new pieces of furniture and decor inside and out.

Thank you for all of your continued support and for viewing our blog! The viewing numbers keep rising every post, so please, please, please show and share with your friends and family. I have loved blogging and my journey as a blogger has just begun! We have big end goals in mind and we love working on our house, because it allows us to get our feet wet.
Thank you again!!!

Nate & Madalen

House Key to Hand, Hand to Paint Brush.

Our home was built in 1946 and was moved to our current location years back, which leads us to believe that it was an original farmhouse from the area. The home comes with loads of character and is the definition of quaint. To bring the character and quaintness back to life, I knew my paint colors needed to be subtle enough to highlight and complement the charm of the older characteristics.

We worked so hard to restore these old walls to their initial appearance by sanding rough spots, plastering large holes, and filling putty with minor holes. This was far from easy, and it took some intense crafting. I am so thankful how everything has turned out and I cannot wait to start adding some decoration to make this home scream us.

Moth Wing
Warm/ Inviting/ Homey/ Medium Beige

I am loving the Moth Wing against all the wood features. The medium beige tone gives the kitchen and dining room such a warm, homey and inviting feel. When we host dinners and parties, the dining room is where everyone tends to migrate and gather in our home.

Acacia Haze
Muted/ Attractive/ Mix of Gray and Green

When I chose the Acacia Haze, I had no idea it would turn my master bath into a haven. The contrast between the white accents and the muted green gives the bathroom such an innocent and pure look.

Blackened Ore
Bold/ Deep/ Charcoal

Blackened Ore is so bold, it is addicting. The richness of the color gives off a some how soothing feel and I am so happy I went for it as an accent wall. It makes you just want to snuggle up in bed and dream.

Nantucket Mist
Bright/ Clean/ Light Gray

The Nantucket Mist gives the good morning feels of waking up on the right side of the bed. The bedroom needed to be a majority of a light and bright color, which was definitely accomplished by this light gray tone.

Stonewall Jackson
Subtle/ Medium Gray

Stonewall Jackson is the giver, because of its ability to highlight other accents of the living room and foyer. It is subtle enough to blend the walls into the home, while allowing for decor pieces and characteristics of the home to pop.

Thank you for reading my first blog post at Our Homestead. It is so humbling and surreal that we get to grow as a family here and enjoy all the other adventures that come with it.

Saying Hello in February

Early January we made our first large purchase of a brand new sectional! The couch is super functional at our place and I never thought one piece of furniture could make a space feel so at home and comfortable. If we are loving a couch this much, I cannot imagine how much we are going to love our first home. Photos are definitely worth sharing of this cozy and homey sectional with a few other photos to go along. Enjoy!

I love this corner photo. I purchased the tall latter on the back wall for $10 at a flea market; the placement in the room gives the area definite height. I purchased the deer mount from May's Floral and nailed it to a piece of corrugated metal I bought at a warehouse. Next on my agenda is to purchase a new rug to complement the sectional. I need something subtle in color and pattern to complement the couch best.

This new display that I put together today has to be my favorite since we have moved into our place. I went to May's Floral today and picked up a Cactus and a ZiZi plant and replanted them in a terracotta pot and a copper pot. I love the life it brings to the space and how it really creates contrast between all of our wood accents. I added a glass bottle to the tray, because I felt like I needed something else. I also added our coasters, the book I am currently reading, (The Subtle Art of Not Giving a ###- Great Book!), and my sketch pad. In the background is the bottom of our entertainment center that really brings it all together!

I always change up my farmhouse style display/buffet table every season. I complemented the table with a fiddle leaf fig, (that is my favorite plant because of its unique shaped leaves) along with a short latter that I also got at the same flea market as the tall latter behind our sectional. The small sized tobacco basket on the top shelf of the table gives the top shelf a lot of height and length; I got it from, you guessed it May's Floral... The last item I want to touch on in this photo is the bin that I purchased from Target for less than $10. It holds all of our board games and cards and it is a great way to organize miscellaneous items in a space that doesn't have a closet.

Nate put together this blanket box a year ago and I finally get to appreciate it because of it having a place by our sectional. This might be my favorite woodworking project that he has made. Also, I have a lot of blankets...

Lastly, I wanted to share with everyone where I come across some of my favorite small decor items that go great in accenting other items. Hope Gospel on the west side of Eau Claire is honestly one of the best places to find unique items if you like my style. Any second hand store is bound to have unique platters, kitchen accents,  bottles, and many other pieces. These two items below I came across in the past couple of months. The dessert display I love because you can see through the clear cover and display any small dessert you might have. I always buy donuts and put them in there for the week. The circle platter I use for my centerpiece on my dining table. It complements rustic items, but still gives a clean look to my entire style.

Thank you for reading; I appreciate it! XOXO

Madalen